Elisi Blog

By Ryan Douglas

In our last post, we talked about how to make a weekly plan to accomplish your goals. And while planning is an important part of the process, you won’t accomplish much without execution. This is where many of us get stuck.

When it comes time to do the work, we can’t concentrate or stay focused. We often let our minds wander or allow distractions to interrupt our flow. Instead of feeling good about what we’ve accomplished for the day, the mood is just the opposite. Guilt and anxiety over another squandered opportunity.

It’s naive to think that we can remain productive for hours on end without a break. Just like it’s silly to believe we can eliminate every distraction. However, using strategies to enhance our focus and concentration we can strengthen our mental muscle.

Focusing Techniques

A big part of improving mental focus is having the right systems in place. Ones that make it easy to generate results without relying solely on willpower. Trial and error will identify the ones that work best for you and your environment. However, here are three proven techniques to get you started.

1. Pomodoro Timers

A popular focus method developed in the 1980s. The idea behind this framework is brilliantly simple – working in short, focused bursts to increase productivity without losing focus.

You begin by setting a goal. Whether it be a single task or smaller chunks of a larger one. You then set the timer – normally for about 25 minutes. Once the clock starts, you work on that single task and nothing else.

The key being to avoid interruptions at all costs. You don’t surf the web, make phone calls, or do anything else off-task.

Once time is up, you take a short break – usually around 5 minutes. During the break, you’re free to stretch, meditate, take a walk, or whatever else you might like. So long as it’s unrelated to your project.

Afterward, you repeat the process three more times (for a total of (4) Pomodoro rounds). Following the 4th session, you take a longer break of about 15-30 minutes.

The idea is to let your brain cool off and allow your subconscious to work on other ideas before starting again.

One of the main benefits received is seeing where your focus lies. Each Pomodoro becomes a task in your daily activity log – making it easy to identify where you spend your time and on what activities.

You also learn to ignore interruptions and stay focused on the task at hand.

Not to mention developing better time estimates for similar projects. By tallying related pomodoros, you see the total time required for a specific task’s completion, which serves as a baseline estimate for future projects.

2. Scheduling Block Time for Focused Work

Many say the hardest part of achieving a high level of focus/concentration is finding the time to do it. That’s why scheduling specific times for focused work is so important.

Otherwise, the goals you want to accomplish get eaten up by your day.

Focused work blocks is a central theme in the popular book Make Time by Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky. These two productivity experts say it’s important to create “blocks” of time designed for working on your top goals and priorities.

And just like with a doctor’s appointment, workplace meeting, or family gathering you schedule these activities on your calendar. Most importantly, you don’t abandon them when other issues crop up.

Knapp and Zeratsky recommend 90-minute blocks of focused work in their book. They say this is just the right amount of time to get into the “zone”, accomplish something meaningful, and step away before losing focus.

That and 90-minutes is all most of us can set aside before life gets in the way.

The specific time of day for your blocks doesn’t matter. Early morning or late evening are the norms but whatever works for you is fine. The authors say by consistently stringing these mini-sessions together, you will make progress towards your goals.

The Elisi app is a great way to schedule your productivity sessions. Using the built-in calendar, you can easily block out periods of time for your focused work. Combined with our habit tracking tool, you always know how much progress you’ve made toward the finish line.

(to be continued)

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By Elisi Studio

Everyone wants to be more productive, but without having to think about or stress over it too much. Fortunately, there are simple ways to accomplish this goal without giving up everything that you enjoy. Because increased productivity often means doing less instead of more. Here are five ideas to get you started.

1. Focus On A Single Task To Improve Productivity

We all have days that feel like a blur – running here and there checking items off our to-do list. Completing errands and whittling away at our tasks should result in satisfaction. Yet, when looking back on the day’s activities, it can be difficult to figure out what we’ve accomplished.

A lot of people think that being busy equates to higher levels of productivity. However, that’s simply not true.Research shows that multitasking decreases the effectiveness of our work.

The human brain can only focus on one thing at a time.

Multiple interests competing for attention can overload our mental circuits and reduce their capacity. Not to mention the time required for our brains to switch gears from one task to the next. 

Simplifying the process is a much better approach to productivity. Because when you focus on one task at a time, you’re able to devote your full attention and mental bandwidth to it. Creativity flourishes and you’re able to work faster, smarter, and produce better results in the long run.

Apps like Elisi can help. Our intuitive interface makes focusing on a single task at a time easy and prevents you from getting overwhelmed. Displaying just the right amount of detail for each entry keeps you motivated and on track.

2. Turn Off Notifications and Remove Social Media Apps

If you’re having heart palpitations after reading this, rest assured you’re not alone.

Addictions to phones and social media is a real issue nowadays. Although mobile devices are meant to make us more productive, they often create the opposite effect.

Yet, it’s nearly impossible to resist their physiological temptation.

Science shows that responding to alerts and notifications on our phones releases dopamine. A powerful brain chemical that controls behavior and “rewards” us for taking beneficial action. Dopamine also strengthens neural pathways and encourages us to repeat these activities in the future.

Checking for updates creates a kind of Pavlovian effect where our brains are conditioned to respond to this stimulus. Even worse, most social media apps provide never-ending sources of content. They create an “infinity pool” of distraction with no clear end or stopping point in sight.

The exact opposite of what you need to be productive.

But no worries – you don’t have to become a recluse or swear off technology to get more done. You just need to be intentional with how you interact with your device and apps in general. For example:

Disabling alerts and notifications – can reduce the temptation to frivolously check email or social media. If you aren’t facing the barrage of dings and vibrations to start with, you’re less likely to think about them.

This also minimizes the lost productivity (mentioned earlier) when switching between tasks.

Removing social apps – frees you from the anxiety of wondering what you’re missing out on. If you don’t have these apps installed, you can’t access them any time of day. Many who’ve taken a break from social media report it can be liberating.

No one is saying you can’t use these apps – just set rules around how you do so.

Like scheduling specific times of day to go online and holding yourself accountable to these limits. Or rewarding yourself with 10 – 15 minutes of interaction for every 45 minutes of productivity.

Also, consider saving your interactions for when you’re near a desktop computer vs your mobile phone. You’ll still know what’s going on, but without having the urge to check again every 5 minutes.

3. Scheduling In Downtime Increases Productivity

For many of us, our natural tendency during breaks is to reach for our phones or devices. We check email or catch up on social media posts from friends. Because we live in an “always-on” society, if we’re not connected it feels like getting left behind.

Although briefly satisfying, constant stimulus hurts long-term productivity. 

Productivity expert and author Chris Bailey says our minds alternate between two main states –hyperfocus and scatterfocus. And depending on which mode they’re in, they function in completely different ways.

In hyperfocus mode, our brains work hard to accomplish the tasks we want to achieve. Think of this period as the time where physical or mental labor is required to complete an assignment.

Scatterfocus is the exact opposite. Here we brainstorm and create a roadmap of how we’ll get from point A to point B. Scatterfocus is about seeing the big picture and analyzing where we can make the greatest impact.

Not surprisingly, the two form a mutually beneficial relationship. You can’t figure out what needs to be done without contemplating the possibilities. And you’ll never get there without doing the work.

Our subconscious does some of its best work when we are idle. Including solving complex problems, pondering lingering issues, and coming up with new ideas.

If you’re stuck in hyperfocus mode, you don’t have time to concentrate on long-term growth.

Instead of checking email or Facebook at lunch, let your mind wander or try and relax. Take a quick walk outside, get some sun, and enjoy nature. Spend a few minutes relaxing or meditating. Or sit quietly and think (allowing yourself to daydream).

Giving your mind some space may be the most productive thing you’ll ever do.  

If you feel guilty about taking breaks, it’s probably because you don’t think you can. Next time try giving yourself permission beforehand. When you schedule downtime alongside your productive efforts, it becomes easier to relax and enjoy the moment.

Otherwise, you’ll worry the entire time and defeat the whole point of the process.

4. Keep a “Distraction” Book With You

When you’re concentrating, one of the easiest ways to lose focus is by latching on to whatever thought pops into your brain. Yet, in a highly-connected world, it’s incredibly easy to do.

Open a new browser tab – and next thing you know – you’ve wasted an hour surfing the web with nothing to show for it.

This issue stems from the fact that we believe we’ll forget or miss something if we don’t act immediately. We abandon whatever we’re doing to investigate our fleeting impulses before they pass us by. And go completely off-track in the process.

A much better (and easier) approach is to keep a “distraction” notebook with you.

If you’re working on a task – and notice your mind wandering – stop immediately and write your thoughts down in the notepad. Then continue on with your mission. Once you reach a legitimate stopping point in your work, or the time comes for a break, use the opportunity to revisit the items in your notebook.

Working this way offers several advantages:

Frees mental space in your brain – leaving a task unfinished creates clutter in our minds and makes it harder to relax. Mental distraction creates a nagging sensation that’s hard to get rid of. Writing down your ideas gives your brain permission to release these thoughts.

Removes guilt – associated with relaxing when you think you should be working. Your brain feels satisfied in knowing you’ll address the task later which allows you to close the thought loop.

Increases productivity – offloading your thoughts (without killing your momentum) keeps you on track and moving forward. A distraction book prevents you from veering off course and wasting precious time.

Although you can use an app to capture your ideas, stick with traditional paper and pen if possible. Simply because anytime you go “electronic” you run the risk of temptation from other programs that may slow you down.

5. Stop Beating Yourself Up Over Productivity

It sounds cliché, but improving productivity is more of a journey than a destination. Anyone who says they have it all figured out is either lying or delusional. There’s no one perfect formula that works every time for everybody.

No matter how hard you try, eventually you’re going to slip up.

When it happens, don’t beat yourself up. Because the more you do the less likely you’ll be able to recover from it. Acknowledging that we’re human (and people make mistakes) is a fundamental element of improving productivity. 

Take a breath, regroup, and start over again.

Evaluate and learn from your mistake – rather than dwelling on it. If you stumble early in your journey, set smaller, more achievable goals to help build your confidence. As your productivity muscles grow, you’ll feel more comfortable taking on larger tasks.

You’ll also expand your mindset and uncover what you’re truly capable of.

Conclusion

In the end, productivity isn’t about being perfect. It’s about using the time and resources you have wisely toaccomplish goals and increase your happiness.

One of the keys to achieving more is to do less. Focus on a single task at a time, remove all possible distractions, and schedule in essential downtime. You’ll not only get more accomplished faster, but likely have better results to show for your efforts.

And isn’t that what being productive is all about?

Looking for a more human way to accomplish your goals?

Sign up for your FREE Elisi account and get started today.

(By Elisi Studio)

Why do we recommend a weekly plan?

Let’s use a road trip as an analogy:

• The annual plan is like determining a destination
• The monthly plan can be seen as a GPS, helping us to choose the best route
• The weekly plan is like a steering wheel; only by constantly adjusting it can we avoid going off track
• And the daily plan is the gas pedal; a good one can speed us to our destination.

Instead of focusing on completing a daily plan, we recommend you look beyond to the weekly plan to see the big picture, which is also within your control.

Let’s start with the weekly plan—not because the monthly plan and the annual plan are not good; it’s just that when our planning ability is still rudimentary, it’s less frustrating to start from the weekly plan and proceed step by step, instead of overstretching.

How to make a weekly plan?

Prepare a sheet of A4 paper or just Excel. Of course, we recommend that you try the Elisi Web version or the Elisi Mac App to plan ahead.

Our weekly planning is divided into three steps:

1. List all this week’s to-do task
2. Put these tasks into your planner, according to the rules of Importance and Urgency
3. Self-motivate, assess, and summarize.

Let’s use the Elisi Web/Elisi Mac App as a template to explain how to make a weekly plan.

1. List all this week’s to-do tasks: use the Notes section on the left.  

First, take a few minutes to recall and write down everything you want or need to do next week. Be sure that you don’t resist these things. When your motivation is low, forcing yourself to persist makes it easy to fail, thus increasing your frustration.

Then, follow the Importance Rule from the Four-Quadrant Working Method (find it in Elisi Inspiration Week 3) to delete irrelevant tasks before you begin.

After deleting, allocate time to the remaining tasks. For example, this week you plan to read a 300-page novel and read 50 pages per day, which usually takes 1-2 hours, or just dozens of minutes if you read fast. At this point, we need to use the self-time record (find it in Elisi Inspiration Week 1) to get a basic understanding of how you are spending your time, and then estimate a time for each task you plan to do.

Check how much time is needed in total to complete all the tasks that remain after the first deletion. If the time required exceeds your available weekly time, you will need to do a second round of deleting. For example, if the planned tasks need 50 hours, but you have only 30 hours per week apart from work, you have to delete 20 hours’ worth of tasks.

2. Put tasks into the planner according to the Rules of Importance and Urgency. 

After two deletions, now let’s list all remaining tasks on different days in the upcoming week according to the Urgency Rule from the Four-Quadrant Working Method (find it in Elisi Inspiration Week 3):

• Single tasks and urgent tasks can be listed on the first few days in the “Planner”
• Long-term tasks (such as reading or learning a foreign language) can be added to the “Habit” and an average time assigned to them each day
• Related tasks can be classified into a “Project” and then scheduled to be completed on a different day.

In this way, your mission this week will be scientifically arranged for every day.

3. Self-motivation, assessment and summarization. 

When you add tasks to Elisi’s daily Planner, you will see a round gray badge on Elisi’s daily Planner Bar; and on Elisi’s bottom tab bar, you will see a Weekly Achievement Trophy. Each day, when you complete 3 tasks (no matter whether it’s a single task or multiple tasks under Project and Habit), you will get that day’s badge, and a segment of the Weekly Achievement Trophy will be lit as well.

Every time you harvest a daily badge, reward yourself by doing something relaxing and entertaining. That means that when you are working on other tasks, you know that there will be fun rewards waiting for you.

In addition, you can select different stickers in front of each task to record the quality of the outcome; that is, whether you are happy enough with your results. If you are not satisfied, write some retrospective comments in the “To-do Details” to help you make progress next time. Of course, when you enjoy completing a task very well, you can also write down insights to help yourself sustain a good trend.

At the beginning, we all miscalculate the time spent on doing things due to lack of expertise: overestimating ourselves or arranging to do too few things are all normal behaviors, and you will improve as long as you don’t blame yourself excessively and dent your enthusiasm.

Now the plan is ready. How can it be carried out? Let’s talk about Concentration Management in our Time Management Series in future Elisi Inspiration.